1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to computerized educational systems and methods, and particularly to an educational system and method for testing memorization that can be used to teach memorization of a text, such as the Qur'an.
2. Description of the Related Art
The Qur'an (which literally translates as “the recitation”) is the central religious text of Islam (and is often transliterated as Quran, Qur'ān, Koran, Alcoran or Al-Qur'ān). The text of the Qur'an consists of 114 chapters of varying lengths, each known as a “sura”. Chapters are classed as Meccan or Medinan, depending on where the verses were revealed. Chapter titles are derived from a name or quality discussed in the text, or from the first letters or words of the sura. Generally, longer chapters appear earlier in the Qur'an, while the shorter ones appear later. The chapter arrangement is thus not connected to the sequence of revelation.
Each sura is formed from several “ayat”, or verses. The number of verses differ from chapter to chapter. An individual verse may be just a few letters or several lines. The actual number of ayat has been a controversial issue among Muslim scholars since Islam's inception, some recognizing 6,000, some 6,204, some 6,219, and some 6,236, although the words in all cases are the same. The most popular edition of the Qur'an, which is based on the Kufa school tradition, contains 6,236 ayat.
There is a crosscutting division into 30 parts, or “ajza”, each containing two units called “ahzab”, each of which is divided into four parts, or “rub 'al-ahzab”. The Qur'an is also divided into seven stations, or “manazil”. In addition to, and largely independent of, the division into suras, there are various ways of dividing the Qur'an into parts of approximately equal length for convenience in reading, recitation and memorization. The thirty ajza can be used to read through the entire Qur'an in a week or a month. Some of these parts are known by names, and these names are the first few words by which the “juz” starts. A juz' is sometimes further divided into two ahzab, and each hizb is subdivided into four rub 'al-ahzab. A different structure is provided by the “ruku'at”, semantical units resembling paragraphs and forming roughly ten ayat each. Some also divide the Qur'an into seven manazil to facilitate complete recitation in a week.
The thirty ajza, or chapters, of the Qur'an include one hundred and fourteen separate suras, or episodes. Each episode has a differing length with a different number of ayat. Muslims memorize the Qur'an, or parts of it, so that they can recite it in their prayers. Typically, children, at a relatively early age, are encouraged to memorize the Qur'an or, at least, portions of it. This is typically taught in Mosques or in special schools under the supervision of instructors.
Some schools prepare their students such that they will memorize all of the Qur'an prior to graduation from primary school. In these schools, students typically recite the portions they have memorized in front of their instructors to make sure that their memorization is completely accurate. The process of testing the students, particularly in large schools with large numbers of students, is time consuming and detracts from the overall educational time. It would be desirable to provide a computerized process, allowing each student to be tested simultaneously and rapidly, thus leaving more time for teaching during the school day.
Thus, an educational system and method for testing memorization solving the aforementioned problems is desired.